Category: Virtual Assisting

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philosophy Virtual Assisting

Self employment- The Best things

Most days, I love love love working for myself. Here’s the top reasons.

Dress code: Dealing with an obstreperous client with complete professionalism on the phone while dressed in ragged jammies and fuzzy slippers can really take the sting out.

Office space: I don’t see clients in my office. Therefore I can have a polar bear calendar on the wall, a stuffed bat hanging over my desk, all manner of personal nonsense on my bulletin boards, and a cat bed on either side of the monitor. I also use the most obnoxious neon colored file folders for my few paper files because they amuse me. (Theoretically I could work from the back deck, but effectively if I’m on the deck all I do is enjoy the scenery.)

Client choice: I really think a well developed spidey sense is the most valuable skill an entrepreneur can have. Some will say that signing a client based on a gut feeling is a bad business practice, but I’ll say that for a service provider its the BEST business practice. Working with someone you don’t mesh well with is a recipe for being unhappy with your job. If I wanted that I’d have never left the corporate scene.

Work hours: This probably goes on the list of worst things too, but the best thing is that I can get a lot of my work done in the hours that are best for me. That happens to mean that I start work around 6am. By the time most of my clients get to their offices, I’m ready for a break. Perfect for phone calls and emails. On the other hand, by 2 I’m really dragging and I can leave my home office and go do something completely different like laundry or plan supper or go to the gym to clear my head and get some fresh air.

My job, my way: I’m a Virtual Assistant and normally that means I work from my office on client projects. But I also have a passion for helping businesses get organized as a foundation for growth and sometimes that means going into an office to help get it under control. I get to pick.

Actually, that pretty well summs it up. I Get To Pick.

Categories
quick tips Virtual Assisting Work strategies

Don’t procrastinate. Outsource!

Outsourcing isn’t just bad tech support in India.

Computers and other technology have enabled people who are very good at one certain thing to go into business to handle that one thing for others. Outsourcing to overseas has become popular and was really publicized by Tim Feriss in 4-Hour Workweek, but there are a lot of reasons that might not be the right fit for you. Fortunately, a lot of outsourcing is available right in your own business community.

Bookkeeping:

This service is one of the most popular for outsourcing. Taxes, payroll, those are mysteries that most of us would be happier never delving into. Fortunately there are many, many options for this that can be more affordable than the traditional hiring of a full time accountant. There are specialist book keepers who will keep your Quickbook files up to date and pay your bills. There are tax accountants who will handle only your taxes once a year. There are payroll specialists who will take your timesheets and produce everything from the paychecks for your contractors to your monthly or quarterly IRS documentation. Figure out what your needs are and take a look around.

IT support:

This is another one that too many people try to do themselves thinking its cheaper. How cheap is it when its costing you the time you could be generating billable hours for a client? How cheap is it when you spend hours on it and it still doesn’t work properly? What good is a network or computer that’s always down? If you live in a metro area check with your local Chamber of Commerce, I bet there are several businesses who handle anything from setting up your entire office IT pathways to cleaning viruses off your kid’s computers. A lot faster than most of us, and without the frustration.

Phones:

As business picks up, are you still trying to handle all your calls yourself? This one really depends on how big your business is and what kind of service you offer, but there are really excellent answering services out there. Some of them will answer as if it were your own office and can handle simple things like calling up a quote or setting up an appointment. Some can handle very detailed customer support. Some just take the traditional message and text your phone with it. How much would your productivity increase if you weren’t being constantly interrupted, even if those interruptions are really important? Could they wait 50 minutes if you check your messages once an hour? Could they wait until noon? Only you can judge the needs of your business, but give it some thought.

Web Development:

Having a spiffy professional website is as much about having the right tools and knowledge as it is having fresh interesting content. Unless you have training in coding, and graphics, and copywriting, you could probably use professional help with some of the pieces. Systems like Joomla are designed to make it easier to handle some parts, but easier is relative. How much knowledge do you have to start with, and what is the time it will take you to really figure it out worth when balanced with time you could be doing things you’re really good at. Ones that generate revenue? Web developers are a dime a dozen out there. Look at their websites, but don’t just look at the graphics or colors. Do you like what they have to say? Do they have actual content on their site? How do they feel about designing a website with a CMS system so you can adjust the content to suit yourself without having to wait on the developer and pay web developer fees to change simple text? Ask a lot of questions. How long have they been programming? Can they write a store system from scratch? Can they set up your web forum? Do they have customer testimonials or references to offer? Websites are an integral part of business now. Take the time and spend the money to have it done right, once.

Copywriting and editing:

The first rule of writing and editing is to always have someone else read it before it goes out. Even the best editors can and do make simple mistakes in their own work. Do you write well? Is your grammar correct? Does your style enhance your business? A good copywriter will take your ideas and set them out clearly and concisely. One document can be revised into several kinds of content. Often your written presentation is your first impression, either your website or your brochure. Are you making the right kind of impression?

This is just the beginning. Almost every possible task has someone that is devoted to doing it well as an independent professional. Think about what parts of your business you don’t enjoy or that don’t have a high enough return on the time investment and see about outsourcing it.

A growing outsourcing profession is the Virtual Assistant. A profession near and dear to my heart. So they’ll get their very own entry.

Categories
philosophy Virtual Assisting

Virtual Assistants, what we are and what we aren’t.

I love my job, but here in my local area the title ‘Virtual Assistant’ draws a lot of blank looks. So here are a few highlights.

Virtual Assistants are a growing niche of service providers. The definition I like is:

A Virtual Assistant, (VA), is an independent entrepreneur who provides administrative, creative, and/or technical services virtually from a home office on a contractual basis.

If you’re thinking that’s a pretty broad definition, you’re right.

What we are:

Independent contractors. We handle our own overhead. We make our own decisions. We are professionals who work in partnership with other business professionals.

Skilled professionals. A good VA will have at least 5 years of corporate brick and mortar experience before she strikes out on her own. She’ll have a good handle on all the basic administrative tasks, and will probably have specialized knowledge in some area like bookkeeping, document generation, or even marketing that she builds her client roster around.

Individuals. If we’re going to be working together, please take the time to be sure we’re a good fit just as you would hiring a permanent executive assistant in house. Perfect skills aren’t going to help if there’s constant miscommunication due to different work styles.

Virtual. Meaning that we have our own offices that we work from. You don’t have to find a place to put us in your home office.

Team players. How well your business does matters to us. We want to play an integral part in helping you succeed. Its about building relationships with our clients and getting an in depth understanding of how we can help you.

What we are not.

Lackeys. We’re seasoned professionals who make a living handling projects for other businesses. If you need absolute control over a project or change your mind constantly, then a Virtual Assistant is not going to be the right choice for you.

Employees. This means we handle our own overhead, but it also means that we’re professionals running a business. We’re not always going to be able to handle last minute emergencies. We’re not always going to be immediately available by phone. We’re not usually going to be willing to work in your office.

One size fits all. It is very important to find a VA who has both the right experience and the right personality to work with you and your business. We have a huge variety of skills, and often we specialize in the things we do best, even though we’re qualified to do other things. If you need a book keeper and a copy writer, look around. You may find the perfect fit in one assistant. You may find a copy writer you love who doesn’t have the book keeping skills you need. Keep the copy writer and hire a different VA to handle your book keeping. By figuring out the specialties you need, you can get more for your money.

I’m sure you can find an exception for each and every one of those points, but they’ll get you started if you’re thinking about adding a Virtual Assistant to your team.

I think once you do you’ll wonder why you waited so long.